Day at the Museums

Today we tried to have a lower key day because Christina, our friends, and I have been "power traveling" as I like to call it. Long days sight seeing, with a ton of walking, and very little sleep. I woke up this morning and my feet didn't even feel like they had recovered from walking on all the uncomfortable surfaces in Versailles yesterday.

 First stop this morning was the Louvre. I wasn't super stoked about it because I had been a few years ago and the museum is so big, I feel overwhelmed. I have never taken much art history so I struggle to appreciate the importance of most of the art, even though I know that it is historic and cool. Basically, I was just along for the ride because my friends wanted to go.

 At 9:00 when the Louvre opened it was already PACKED with tourists. No one wasted any time getting their culture in today.

 We basically walked straight for the Mona Lisa. I feel bad walking by all the other paintings, but when you are on a mission, you have to execute. Everyone is always surprised by how small the painting is. Mona was surrounded by tourists and behind glass. She looked just as suspicious as the first time I saw her.

 This is the only other picture of a painting I took in the Louvre. It is of a little boy with a gun, and the reason I took the photo was because he was the only subject that was smiling in the entire Italian gallery. Life isn't miserable, so I liked that this boy (or artist?) had the guts to smile a little.

After 45 minutes in the Louvre (a new embarrassing record for shortest time spent in the museum?) we walked to the Musee de L'Orangeri which happens to be my favorite museum in Paris. I love Monet's water lilies. They have been one of my favorite flowers and paintings since first grade. The museum is all impressionists and it is cool because the rooms with the water lilies are big ovals displaying the huge murals by Monet. 

 To my surprise, camera's were not allowed in the museum anymore. Above is a throw back to the first time I saw the paintings. I am glad I got a picture with my favorite one back in the day!

 After two museums, we were hungry and losing steam and enthusiasm so we had some lunch in the Latin Quarters. We had a really nice waiter who actually offered to take a picture of us in the cafe. He must know that Americans love pictures.

Ch is excited about her cheese sampler

 On our way home Ch and I stopped in the grocery store. We can spend an hour in the grocery store looking at all the different things. We always look at the same isles: chocolate, bread, fruit, and cheese (for Ch). The plan for tonight is to eat baguettes (with cheese and wine for my friends) in the park next to the Eiffel Tower because we are pretty tired. Hanging out in the park seems very French to me so I am looking forward to it.

Only one more day here. I need to do a little shopping but other than that, I have seen most of the sights I was dying to see. We might visit some of the gardens and I am going to make sure to eat everything possible in the bakery. I don't want my trip to end!



As an aside... I don't usually blog about food but last night I had a funny experience. We went to a latin restaurant and I decided to be brave and order the salmon that was "marinated in cilantro and herbs." Can't go wrong, right?

The salmon came out and it wasn't cooked! It did not mention ANYWHERE on the menu that it was tartar. Oops. That's what happens when you take food risks sometimes in foreign countries. The waitress was very nice about it and she ended up exchanging it for a nice, safe, chicken dish. It was good, but I am going to stick to my carbs until I get home.